Iconic L.A. Radio Host Dusty Street Dies

From recent air time on Sirius XM Satellite Radio to her time at legendary pioneering Modern Rock station KROQ-FM in Los Angeles, Dusty Street paved a path that attracted legions of fans of acts such as Siouxsie and The Banshees and Bauhaus to Radio.

Now, those who listened to her some 40 years ago, and even in recent months, are mourning the loss of the longtime air personality.

News of Street’s passing was first shared Sunday morning (10/22) by longtime colleague and friend Richard Blade; the two hosts worked at KROQ in the 1980s and, more recently, at Sirius XM, where Blade can be heard on the “First Wave” channel.

“Time is a cruel mistress. We all lost a dear friend today,” said Blade, who revealed that it was Street to trained him to run the board at KROQ. “[T]rying to emulate her expertise was a tough job. She brought so much of her love of music — particularly Dark Wave — to the airwaves. In today’s barren terrestrial radio market, there is no one like her. I’ll so miss her voice, her laugh, her caring for animals, our trips to Hawaii together, and our visits when I’d do a gig in Cleveland, where she did her show on SiriusXM and made her home for the past decade. Your talents will not be forgotten. Fly low and avoid the radar, Dusty.”

More than 100 comments were made to Blade’s post on Facebook as of 5pm Pacific on Sunday.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Street was in Eugene, Ore., at the time of her death on Saturday (10/21). She was 77 years of age. Geno Michellini, a longtime voice at Rocker KLOS-FM in Los Angeles, said via social media that he was at Street’s bedside at the time of her passing. “The numerous afflictions that she has been so indomitably fighting these last years finally caught up to her,” he wrote. “She died peacefully, quietly and surrounded by love in a beautifully serene location overlooking the most beautiful lake you could ever want. As befitting the queen that she was.”

At Sirius XM, she was a “Deep Tracks” channel hosts. And, Sirius XM confirmed that Dusty Street was not an on-air pseudonym but indeed her legal name — Dusty Frances Street.

Street is also perhaps a legend when it comes to female rock-and-roll air personalities. She worked at progressive rock KMPX in San Francisco in 1967, and then joined Album-Oriented Rock KSAN-FM. In 1978, Street moved to L.A. and joined KROQ. That stint lasted two years, with Street briefly taking on work at competitors KLOS and KWST “K-West 106.” In 1981, she rejoined the airstaff at KROQ at a time when Rick Carroll had yet to develop the “Rock of the ’80s” programming which would propel a once-forlorn (and bankrupt) FM to the top of the ratings by fall 1982. Street remained with KROQ as its evening host through 1989.

https://www.bandstofans.com/interviews/legendary-rock-radio-dj-dusty-street